The present invention relates to a computer, and more particularly to a pocket-size computer designed with an improved body structure.
Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 1-1, the pocket computer of the present invention similar in size to a video home system (V H S) is shown comprising a main body 10 and a cover body 20, which are pivotally connected. The cover body 20 is provided therein with an LCD (liquid crystal display) screen while the main body 10 is composed of a keyboard, a mouse connection port B and a magnetic card drive C located at the right side thereof, a printer connection port D and a disk drive connection port E located at the left side thereof, an image adjustment Knob F and a power supply switch G and a press button H for opening and closing the cover body located at the front side thereof, and an external power source input socket and a telephone jack I located at the back side thereof. It is essential that sizes of peripheral connection ports, control knobs, and various components of the computer must be miniaturized appropriately so as to be housed in the main body having a limited accommodating space available. It is therefore apparent that the structural integrity of various component parts of the computer is a compulsory prerequisite to achievement of the objective of reducing the over-all size of the computer to fit in the pocket of a user.
In general, the pivotal association of the main body with the cover body of a conventional portable computer of the prior art and the like is accomplished by a fastening means, which comprises mainly a fastening portion with a protruded means located at one side thereof and a recess located at the other side thereof. Such fastening means as mentioned above is defective in design in that it is vulnerable to damage brought about by abrasion taking place between the protruded means and the recess after a prolonged usage thereof. Other prior art methods of pivotally connecting the main body with the cover body of a portable computer involve in making use of an elastic element such as a spring to actuate an arresting device of the main body to become fastened with a retaining plate of the cover body, and by making use of an elastic element which serves to actuate a hooked piece of the main body to engage with a fastening means of the cover body in a manner similar to a hook-and-eye mechanism. These two methods described above are also faulty in design in that their relatively complicated structures and their relatively large sizes prevent the over-all size of the computer from being greatly reduced.
Now referring to FIG. 2, the telephone input jack of a prior art portable computer is shown comprising a seat body I1 of a square construction, which in turn is composed of a guide slot I 11 to receive therein a telephone plug I 2, and of a signal cable connection portion I 12 located at the upper portion thereof. The signal cable connection portion I 12 is provided with a plurality of signal cables I 13 entering thereinto from the rear end portion thereof and emerging therefrom at the front end portion wherein they form guide grooves I 14. In addition, the housing I 3 is composed of a receiving room I 31, which is formed by the side clamping wall I 32 to accommodate therein the square seat body I 1. In compliance with the specifications of the current telephone line plug I 2, the square seat body I 1 and the receiving room I 31 can not be further reduced in size. Accordingly, a substantial reduction in the size of the main body of the prior art portable computer is out of the question.
As shown in FIG. 3, a conventional pocket computer of the prior art is shown comprising a pivotal axis K coupling pivotally the main body 10 with the cover body 20 by means of pivotal ear buttons K 1 and K 2. However, the electronic communications between the main body 10 and the cover body 20, such as the electronic control of the image on the display screen of the cover body 20 by the central processing unit (C P U) located in the main body 20, depend on a bulk of communication cables K 3 which enter the bottom edge 21 of the cover body 20 from the upper edge 11 of the main body 10. As a result, communication cables K 3 are vulnerable to constant bending by the actions of opening and closing the cover body 20, thereby resulting in the fatigue of the cable cores which may eventually bring about the breakage of the communication cables K 3. In addition, the esthetic effect of the pocket computer is greatly compromised by the visible presence of cables K 3, as shown in FIG. 3.
Now referring to FIG. 4, the key L of the pocket computer Keyboard of the prior art is shown comprising an upper housing face plate L 1 with a circular hole L 11 located at the center thereof for permitting an elastic rubber diaphragm L 2 to float therein. The circular hole L 11 of the upper housing face plate L 1 is provided with two retaining hooks L 12, which are constructed on the wall of the circumference of the circular hole L 11 and are positioned oppositely. The press key L 3 is composed of two hook ears L 31 located oppositely on the undersides thereof and of a suppressing column L 32 located at the center of the underside thereof. In the process of assembling the component parts of the key mentioned above, the press key L3 is arranged on the upper housing face plate L 1 in such manners that the hook ears L 31 engage with the retaining hooks L 12 and that suppressing column L 32 presses against the top portion of the elastic rubber diaphragm L 2. It must be mentioned here that the engagement of hook ears L 31 with retaining hooks L 12 must not be too tight to prevent the press key L 3 from sliding upward and downward. For this reason, the thickness of hook ears L 31 and retaining hooks L 12 is generally reduced at the expense of positional stability of both press key L 3 and the upper housing face plate L 1. As a result, when the press key L 3 is pressed down, the suppressing column L 32 of the press key 1 3 may fail occasionally to press properly against the top portion of the elastic rubber diaphragm L 2, thereby resulting in a failure of entry of information. On the other hand, the press key L 3 may become detached easily when it is pressed down hard. It is therefore apparent that structural defects described above have to be overcome.